Catholic Higher Education Globally: Enrollment Trends, Current Pressures, Student Choice, and the Potential of Service Learning

Abstract

Globally, Catholic universities operate in an increasingly competitive market. They tend to have a strong academic reputation in many countries and their graduates tend to do well professionally. One explanation for this success could be that many universities are selective: they may attract motivated students. In addition, it is sometimes suggested that the values emphasized in Catholic education may also play a role, including for the choice of students to attend a particular university. Whether values and the Catholic faith matter for students, or rather how much they matter, is important for the future of Catholic universities in a context of rising competition as well as pluralism, including in terms of the views held by students. After a review of broad trends in enrollment in Catholic higher education globally and regionally over the last four decades, and a discussion of some of the increasing competitive pressures Catholic (and other) universities are confronted with, this article explores some of the factors that may lead students to enroll in Catholic higher education institutions. Values and faith matter, but (not surprisingly) other factors matter more. The paper also discusses the possibility for Catholic universities to invest in service learning as an opportunity to strengthen their Catholic identity in a way that respects pluralism in the student body.